


'tis the damn season

by doingthemost



Category: Schitt's Creek
Genre: (oh right alexis is a [hollywood] star), Compare and Contrast, F/F, Multi, Winter Solstice, except one of them is sunshine and one of them is a crabby moon, i regret this metaphor, two emo kids, what does that make alexis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-21
Updated: 2020-12-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:15:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 900
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28205193
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doingthemost/pseuds/doingthemost
Summary: "It's a turning point." Twyla smiled at Stevie, and for once Stevie didn't have to tilt her head up to meet someone's eyes. Despite their classmates' growth spurts, they were still the same height. "It means the worst of the winter is over soon."Twyla and Stevie celebrate two Winter Solstices in Schitt's Creek.
Relationships: Stevie Budd/Alexis Rose/Twyla Sands (Background), Stevie Budd/Twyla Sands
Comments: 8
Kudos: 14





	'tis the damn season

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Januarium](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Januarium/gifts).



> Happiest of birthdays to Januarium, whose birthday falls on the Winter Solstice this year!! (+ a very grateful thank you to singsongsung for your last-minute beta read!)

Stevie and Twyla's first Winter Solstice together, at fourteen, had been a coincidence. 

They'd walked home together, neighbours on the same side of town. Stevie had pointed at the simple green wreath on Twyla's door. "Christmas wreath?" she'd asked, and Twyla had shaken her head. 

"Yule," Twyla had said, as though that explained everything. Stevie raised her eyebrows, so Twyla added, "Angela took me out foraging for the evergreens. It's a Solstice thing."

"Solstice," Stevie echoed. The word felt funny in her mouth. "What's that?"

"The shortest day of the year." Twyla held her hand up at an angle. "After tomorrow, the days will start to get longer. It's a turning point." She smiled at Stevie, and for once Stevie didn't have to tilt her head up to meet someone's eyes. Despite their classmates' growth spurts, they were still the same height. "It means the worst of the winter is over soon."

"But we live in Canada," Stevie had said, her voice dry. True to her word, she shivered; Twyla hadn't let them in yet. "The worst of the winter is the _whole_ winter." 

"Even so," Twyla said. A smile slid across her face – the one that was so big, Stevie always thought it looked like it hurt. "You wanna come in? Celebrate it with me?"

Maureen's place was only a few houses away; it didn't look like anyone was home. The lights were off at Twyla's place, too. Stevie hadn't listened to everything Twyla had said about her mom, her boyfriend, and a broken barrel down Niagara Falls. She'd heard enough of those stories to know how they usually ended. 

"Yeah," Stevie said. "Sure." 

She pushed away the mental image of Twyla alone, making a yule wreath for her own solitary enjoyment, and stepped inside. Twyla bent down to turn the tree lights on, and Stevie set her coat on the edge of the couch.

"Lemme guess." Stevie raised her eyebrows, setting her mouth into a flat line as she pretended to survey the tree. "It's a yule tree, not a Christmas tree?"

"Yes!" Twyla was beaming at her now, all big eyes and endless smile. Stevie pressed her lips together; she'd had a shitty fucking day. She didn't feel like catching one of Twyla Sands' contagious smiles. "Exactly." 

Stevie reached for a garland of multi-coloured lights. "You know it looks a hell of a lot like a real Christmas tree, right?" 

"I had to work with what I had." Twyla shrugged one shoulder, unconcerned. Somehow, her smile grew even _bigger_ as she reached out and set a hand on Stevie's arm. "But hey. Christmas, yule, whatever. What's most important is that the worst is almost over." 

"If you say so." But Stevie's traitorous mouth was twitching, and biting her lip hard didn't stop the smile from breaking through. 

"I do say so." Twyla took a deep breath, and Stevie drew one in, too. "Do you believe me?"

"No." But Twyla's hand was still on Stevie's arm, warm and comforting, squeezing gently through Stevie's sweatshirt. Resigned, Stevie rolled her eyes. "But I believe in you believing the worst is over."

"That's good enough," Twyla said, and _that_ was a sentiment Stevie could get behind.

  


* * *

  


On another December night, almost two decades later – something Stevie never wants to fucking think about in those terms ever again – she clinks her beer against Twyla's, then takes a long drink. 

"Happy Solstice, Twyla." 

Twyla draws her legs up under her, and leans her head against the back of her couch. The 'yule tree,' full of decorations as old as they are, is lit up in the corner. When she speaks, her voice is quiet: "Happy Solstice, Stevie."

Stevie kicks her feet out onto Twyla's coffee table. She turns over her thoughts, weighing the possibilities her words could bring in her mind, before she decides to just fucking go for it. 

"Why didn't you ever invite Alexis to this?"

The silence stretches between them. It fills the space, thick and cloying, until it almost feels like something Stevie could suffocate under, before Twyla breaks it. "It's always been a you-and-me thing. And I didn't know if... If she'd think it was dumb."

"She wouldn't think it was dumb." Twyla raises an eyebrow at her, and Stevie amends her words. "Okay, she would've thought it was dumb when she first got here. But the Alexis we know now wouldn't."

Twyla sighs. "I guess you're right." 

Stevie takes another sip of her beer. "I'm always right." 

"Well, it's too late." Twyla tries a smile, but it doesn't meet her eyes. "She's gone now." 

"I know." Stevie could leave it at that. She could finish her beer, make small talk about motels and cafés and entrepreneurship. Or she could try to fill the space Alexis left for Twyla, just like Twyla's been trying to do for her. 

"Solstice means the worst is almost over," she says. "Alexis is coming back for the holidays, and maybe we can... I mean, if she wants. We could pick back up again. Between the three of us." 

"If she wants to." But Twyla's expression is softer now, and Stevie knows she hasn't done a completely shitty job of this. "We'll just have to see."

"We will." Stevie nudges Twyla with a foot. "Do you believe me?"

"Yeah," Twyla says after a moment. She gives Stevie a brief, grateful smile. "I do."

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * ['tis the damn season [Podfic]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28443486) by [blackglass](https://archiveofourown.org/users/blackglass/pseuds/blackglass), [twtd](https://archiveofourown.org/users/twtd/pseuds/twtd)




End file.
